October 9, 2008 Issue
Business Spotlight
Audio Grooves—Helping Us All Sing At The Top Of Our Lungs In Our Cars For 12 Years
Story by Sam Calhoun
Did you know that when you buy a new car that the “new” stereo that comes in the car is most likely refurbished? In 90 percent of new vehicles for many decades, this has been the case, yet many people don’t know that the stereo they are buying at a premium has been repaired one, two, maybe three times, or it is a conglomeration of many different broken stereos.
Audio Grooves provides this behind-the-scenes education to its customers free of charge, and offers an alternative to the subpar car stereo. Audio Grooves also sells many other after-market vehicle additions, and everything’s meticulously installed to maintain a car’s factory look.
Audio Grooves turns 12 years old in 2008 and is owned by Jon-Paul Lacy, a 15-year veteran of car and home audio installation and service. Wes Pierce, Lacy’s brother, is the sole employee of Audio Grooves and boasts a decade of car audio experience.
Audio Grooves is unique in the High Country as its selection and service are hard to find without going off the mountain to a larger retailer. Audio Grooves features two garages for car installations, as well as a showroom that features displays of the latest in car audio products and car accessories. Audio Grooves offers car video systems, amplifiers, car stereos, satellite radios, security systems, speaker systems, car audio accessories, interior and exterior Street Glo neon kits, HID light kits, rims, Bluetooth and iPod connection kits and backup camera systems for cars and trucks.
“We’re primarily a mobile electronics store and we stock more dash kits and [car stereo] harnesses than anyone within 60, 70 miles,” said Lacy.
Audio Grooves carries products from Sony, Kenwood, Pioneer, Premier, Kicker, Memphis Car Audio, Street Glo, Boyo Vision, XM, Sirius and Audiovox.
Lacy is from West Palm Beach, Fla. but moved to the High Country during elementary school. He attended Caldwell Community College and then Wilkes Community College where he majored in radio and television broadcasting. With his degree, Lacy worked in radio in Wilkesboro and Boone for about three years before he sensed the bottom was going to drop out of the field and moved his attention to his older brother’s hobby—car audio installation. The hobby seemed right up Lacy’s alley; after all, he loved being around music all day and loved interacting with people.
In 1993, Lacy went to work for Highland Audio on Faculty Street. The business installed and sold home and car audio systems, and Lacy learned all the ins and outs of the business. He handled sales, ordering, customer service and managed installations.
In 1996, Lacy decided he wanted to open his own business.
“It had always been my dream to own my own business,” said Lacy, who credited his mother and brother for supporting him with his dream. “It was my decision and I’m glad I did it. This place—it seems like home a lot of times.”
Over the past 12 years, Lacy has watched as three similar stores opened in the Boone area and then closed. He attributes his success to taking care of customers with respect, courtesy and education, and offering quality products, an expert installation staff and a lifetime warranty on all installations.
“We try and treat people like we want to be treated—that’s the biggest thing. We tough it out through hard times and prosper. A lot of good people in the community keep us here,” said Lacy. “We try to really listen to people and educate them. A lot of stores don’t do that. And a lot of that is Wes.”
“We try to give customers better care than the big box stores,” added Pierce. “The guys at the big box stores are taught three months out of a book. We do more than that.”
Lacy and Pierce teach each customer how to work the equipment once it’s installed, and will not install products that are too big for a vehicle, forgoing an up-sale to make customers happy with the end result.
The biggest change over the past 12 years is the increasing complexity of installation. Lacy and Pierce explained that car manufacturers are cutting a lot of corners these days and making it harder to find one car stereo harness to fit all makes and models. Lacy stocks more than $20,000 worth of harnesses in his shop and he still sometimes can’t “make the stars align” to make them fit in new models of cars. Don’t fret, though; Lacy is connected with every major harness and car audio equipment manufacturer in the nation, so he can have parts to the store very quickly.
“Technology is moving so rapidly these days. It now changes every six months compared to every year or 1.5 years as in the past,” said Lacy.
The good news about the increase in technology is the price of car CD players. While ten years ago, some base models cost more than $300, now they are priced under $100.
But car CD players are but a fraction of the business at Audio Grooves. Recently, many customers are having backup cameras installed on their vehicles.
Navigation systems, as well as Bluetooth setups and iPod connection systems, are also very popular.
Lacy and Pierce have also started installing commercial satellite radio units in local businesses, a section of the business that has been growing rapidly. Website traffic and sales are also increasing thanks to Pierce.
“Wes keeps track of the website and does a great job. In addition to my older brother, Wes has influenced me a lot too. He keeps me abreast to the younger trends,” added Lacy.
When Lacy is not working at Audio Grooves, he tends to his other, complementary business—working as a local disc jockey for weddings, school functions and corporate events. Lacy, AKA “DJ Grooves,” owns DJ Grooves Entertainment, a business he has nurtured since his days in radio. Eighty-five percent of his DJ business comes from customers of Audio Grooves. Lacy provides lighting, music and four different sizes of PAs to customers of the business, regularly playing local weddings and receptions, corporate retreats and school parties. Every year, Lacy plays a party at Parkway Elementary School, and he used to play gigs at all eight local schools.
Lacy and Pierce have no plans to leave the High Country anytime soon. They have plans to create another demonstration vehicle—similar to their now-defunct low-rider vehicle that was common in the Boone Fourth of July Parade—hope to host a car stereo “sound-off” competition and also want to buy a van and outfit it as a mobile PA that can be used at area sporting events.
“We hope to keep making people happy—making them dance to music,” said Lacy. “And we hope to move with the times and incorporate new products.”
Audio Grooves is located at 267 Highway 105 Extension #2. The store and workshop are open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 9:00 a.m. to noon on Saturday. For more information, call 828-265-4339 or click to www.audiogrooves.com.
DJ Grooves Entertainment is available for all types of social gatherings, including weddings, school functions and corporate events. For more information, call 828-773-6960 or click to www.djgroovesentertainment.com.
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